Thread by @Sakura509

"How did South Korea escape the pandemic relatively unaffected economically, with deaths at such low levels, while now vaccinating at such a high level that it has protected itself from future waves of illness and harsh lockdowns?"

"That’s the question we should all be asking, and a clear vindication of the “zero Covid” approach as the optimal short-term strategy."

"Mistakes have clearly been made in both the UK and US – in particular, a cynical fatalism that no scientific solution would emerge, that mass infection was inevitable and that there was little to be learned from other parts of the world."

"It’s the grim worldview that underscores the infamous words Boris Johnson is alleged to have said to his staff last year: “Let the bodies pile high.”"

"For the UK, the corresponding figures are 142,945 deaths from a population of 67.2 million, while in the US there have been 783,575 deaths from a population of 329.5 million."

"It is never too late to learn lessons from countries such as South Korea, which pursued maximum suppression, and succeeded."

"Let us hope that next time we can agree on what needs to be done, and just get on with doing it – and that we have LEADERS WHO CARE ENOUGH ABOUT THEIR PEOPLE TO MAKE THE EFFORT."

theguardian.com/commentisfree/…